Residents have fun in the sun at Spring Fest

Sunday

Jun 11, 2017 at 6:52 PMJun 11, 2017 at 6:53 PM

Tom Godfrey/Wicked Local Correspondent

WESTBOROUGH --- Residents from Westborough and surrounding communities took advantage of the sunny weather and made their way to the town's Spring Festival on Saturday, June 10. Held in concert with the town's 300th anniversary celebration, the festival began with a 5k road race at 8am and ended with fireworks over Lake Chauncy at 9pm. Nearly 25,000 people were expected to attend at least part of the celebration, according to Westborough Rotary Club president Gerry Gross.

“It was a lot to plan but there were a lot of players that helped,” said Gross. The festival was put together by the Westborough Rotary Club, MassWildlife, and the Westborough 300th Committee, however Gross acknowledged that it was a town-wide effort.

He was pleased with the turnout and the festival's community atmosphere.

“When I'm walking around it's people talking to their neighbors,” said Gross. “That's a home run to me.”

This thought was echoed by Assistant Town Clerk Debbie Ledoux, who was manning a booth dedicated to the 300th Committee and the 1717 Shoppe as the harsh sun began to dip.

“I'm excited that there are so many people here of different ages and they're all having fun,” said Ledoux.

As the first major event during Westborough's 300th anniversary celebration, the event also served to raise awareness for future events in town. Nancy Perkins, who manages the 1717 Shoppe, reported an increase in sales prior to the event.

“I'm really excited for the whole year,” said State Representative Hannah Kane as she walked through the fairground with fellow fellow Representative Danielle Gregoire. “I give a ton of credit to the town for this.”

With over 90 vendor and activity booths lining Chauncy Fields there was something for everybody. There was a wide range of food trucks from barbecue at the Baby's Bonetown BBQ truck to grilled cheese at the Say Cheese- Gourmet Grilled Cheese truck. Of course, the hot weather made Uhlman's Ice Cream truck a popular pick for the entire family.

There were several activities to keep children happy. There were multiple bouncy houses, a carnival tent, relay races and more. Many of the children had their faces painted by members of Sky Rise Theater of Westborough.

“My favorite thing so far is the bouncy house,” said Kaylin Banks, 8, as she sat in the grass with her family. “Soon we're going to get ice cream.”

“I liked watching the dog show,” said Liam Coyle, 10, as he sat at a picnic table on Lake Chauncy's shore. “I really like dogs and it was cool to watch them compete.” All of the money raised by the dog show, which was judged by Todd and Lily Hathaway from All About the Pup, was donated to Daisy's Animal Rescue League in Sterling, MA.

The 1717 Tavern was popular with adults. The tent served a variety of draft beers and gave attendees complimentary commemorative cups celebrating the town's anniversary. The tent remained full throughout until it closed at dusk.

“We're having a great time,” said Sean Coyle as he sat down at a picnic table with his son. “The kids are having fun and [the adults] are having fun, so we're all having a great time.”